Toy oil well



D. L. CYRUS TOY OIL WELL Nov. 22, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 25, 1959 s 2 Y 8 c6 2 RS .E 1 00 3 m V m L w A L 2 M. W a m P/XPI/JM/ Nov. 22, 1960 D. CYRUS I 6 TOY on. WELL Filed Sept. 25, 1959 2 Sheets-Shea! 2 INVENTOR. DONAL. L.. Y2 5 AT To szuEYS Uniteri, rates Fate TOY OIL WELL Donal L. Cyrus, 702 Chestnut St., Kenova, W. Va.

Filed Sept. 25, 1959, Ser. No. 842,371 4 Claims. (Cl. 46-39) This invention relates to a novel toy oil well.

The primary object of the invention is to provide an attractive, realistic, and instructive toy of the kind indicated, which; enables a child or youth to simulate and carry out the operations of drilling and pumping an oil well, using water or other suitable liquid as the pumped medium representing oil, pumped out of a representation of an actual well in rock strata.

Another object of the invention is to provide, in a toy of the character indicated above, a drill rig which includes a tower and a pumper which has a manually perated walking beam, which works a drill cable which has a drill'bit reciprocable in the well, and is, at times, usable to operate a pump located at the lower end of the well.

A further object of the invention is to provide, in a toy of the character indicated above, a drill rig, which is adapted to be disposed ona support, such as a table, and a well assembly which is assembled separably to the rig, the well assembly being arranged to rest upon the floor, and being vertically adjustable to accommodate tables of different heights.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a toy of the character indicated above, which is uncomplex in construction, is composed of a small number of simple and easily assembled parts, and which can be made in structurally and mechanically sound forms, at relatively low cost, from a variety of available lightweight materials.

Other important objects and advantageous features of the invention will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings, wherein, for purposes of illustration only, a specific form of the invention is set forth in detail.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a schematic perspective view, showing a toy of the invention, supported on a table and the adjacent floor;

Figure 2 is a vertically contracted and enlarged fragmentary vertical longitudinal section taken on the line 2-2 of Figure l;

V Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical longitudinal section taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical transverse section taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 2; and,

Figure 5 is a horizontal section taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 2.

Referring in detail to the drawings, wherein like numerals designate like parts throughout the several views, the illustrated toy, generally designated 10, comprises'a well assembly 12 and a drill rig assembly 14, the rig assembly being disposable upon a support, such as a table 16, and the well assembly being principally supported on a'floor 18, on a level below the table top 20.

The well assembly 12 comprises a vertically elongated housing 22, preferably of rectangular horizontal cross section, which is composed of a longitudinally elongated,

2 floor-engaging flat base plate 24, to which are suitably secured sidewalls 26, and a single endwall 28, the housing being devoid of a second endwall and having an open inward side 30.

Suitably fixed upon the base plate 24 within the housing 22 is a circular liquid container 32, having an open top 34. In a location near the open side 30 of the housing, the closed lower end 36 of a vertical pump cylinder 38 is suitably secured upon the bottom 41 of the container 32, and a plunger or piston 40 has its lower end engaged in the open upper end of the cylinder 38. A helical spring 42 surrounds the piston 40, is suitably secured to the upper end of the cylinder 38, and is compressed between the cylinder and an enlarged head 44 on the upper end of the piston 40. On and communicating with opposite sides of the pump cylinder 38 are tubular intake and discharge'arms 46- and 48, which have suitable check valves 50 and 52, respectively, therein. The lower end of a vertically disposed flexible tube 54 is secured, as indicated at '56, to the discharge arm 48. Near to and spaced ab'ovethe container 32, the endwall 28 has suitably fixed thereon, the outward end 58 of the divergent legs 60 of a horizontal bracket 62, having a circular bight portion 64 on its inward end, through which is snugly and slidably engaged the lower part of a vertically elongated rigid well-simulating tube or tubing 66, which has an open lower end 68 which is spaced above and is Vertically aligned with the pump piston head 44. The exterior of the housing 22 is preferably finished to simulate rock strata.

Slidably telescoped onto the open upper end of the housing 22 is a wellhead-simulating cover 70, which has a horizontal top wall 72, from which depend sidewalls 74 which engage the housing sidewalls 26, and a single end wall 76 which engages the housing endwall 28, the cover 70 being devoid of a second or inward sidewall. The cover top wall 72 has an inwardly extending extension 78, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, which reaches inwardly beyond the cover and the housing to supportabl'y overlie the table top 20. The cover 70 is vertically adjustable on the housing 22, to accommodate different heights of table tops, by suitable means, such as a. bolt 80, extending outwardly through a vertical slot 82 provided in the housing endw'all 28 and through a bolt hole 84 provided in the cover endwall 76, the bolt having an enlarged head 86 bearing against the inward side of the housing endwall 28, as shown in Figure 2, and a wing nut 88 on its outward end, bearing against the outward side of the cover endwall 76. The upper part of the well tube 66 is fixed to and extends through the cover top wall 72, as indicated at 90, and has an upper end portion 92 which rises above the top wall 72.

Suitably formed upon the cover top wall 72 is a circular liquid-receiving basin 94 into which liquid can fiow from a gooseneck 96 reaching thereinto and whose vertical portion 98 extends downwardly through and is suitably fixed to the cover top wall 72. As indicated at 108, the upper end of the flexible tube 54 is secured to the lower end of the vertical portion 98. A depending drain nipple 102 is secured to and depends from the cover top wall 72, preferably at a location diametrically opposite the gooseneck 96 and communicates, as indicated at 104, with the basin 94. The upper end of a flexible liquid return tube 106 is secured, as indicated at 108, to the nipple 182 and has its lower end 110 disposed to drain into the container '32. With this arrangement, depressionof' the pump piston 46 in the pump cylinder 38, with liquid 112 present in the container '32, closes the check valve 50 and forces liquid past the check valve 52 up through the tube 54 and the gooseneck 96, to be discharged into the basin 94, in simulation of the pumping of an oil well. Liquid thus pumped into the basin 94 returns gravitationally to the container 32 by way of the nipple 102 and the return or drain tube 106.

The drill rig assembly 14 comprises a longitudinally elongated base plate 114 adapted to be stationarily supported upon the table top 20 and the extension 78 of the cover top Wall 72, as upon rear wheels 116 and front wheels 118 of a miniature truck 120, wherein the base plate 114 forms the truck bed. Fixedly mounted on the rear end of the truck bed 114, as indicated at 122, is a simulated oil well derrick or tower 124, which rises above the bed and has a pulley wheel 126 journalled on its upper end.

Located on the truck bed 114, midway between the truck cab 128 and the derrick 124, is a pumper, generally designated 130, which comprises an upstanding U-shaped bracket 132 having a bight portion 134 fixed, as indicated at 136, to the bed 114, and arms 138 carrying an axle or shaft 140 between their upper ends, on which is rockably secured, at a point intermediate its ends, a walking beam 142, having an arcuate head 144 fixed on its rear or outward end which is formed with a vertical groove 146. A pulley wheel 148 is journalled on the inward or forward end of the walking beam 142, on a shaft 150, and a connecting rod 152 is journalled at its upper end on the shaft 150 and is pivoted at its lower end, as indicated at 154, to the free end of a crank arm 156.

The crank arm 156 is fixed on a shaft 157 which is carried by a shaft 158 which is journalled on and extends between side flanges 160 which depend from the bed 114, on a level below the bed, and the crank arm 156 operates in an opening 163 provided in the bed. The shaft 158 can be rotated, either by having a hand crank 159 attached thereto, or by simply rocking the walking beam 142 by hand. Anchored at one end, as indicated at 164, to a shaft or pin 166 extending between the side flanges 160, on a level below the crank arm 156, is a cable 162, the cable being trained upwardly around and inwardly or outwardly over the pulley wheel 143, under the lower end of the head 144, along the head groove 146, and over the derrick pulley wheel 126, to depend into the upper end of the well pipe or tubing 66. In this transit, the part 168 of the cable 162, between the pin 166 and the walking beam pulley wheel 148, bears in a circumferential groove 170 provided in the crank shaft 157.

Suitably secured on the other end of the cable 162, within the well pipe or tubing 66, as indicated at 170, is a weighted simulated drill bit 172. The bit 172 is of substantial length and has an enlarged head 174 on its lower end, which slides within the bore 176 of the tube 66, and spaces the remainder of the bit out of frictional contact with the tube bore. The length of the cable 162 is gauged so that, upon upward rocking of the walking beam 142 from the intermediate horizontal position thereof shown in Figure 3, the drill bit 172 drops below the lower end 68 of the tube 66, as shown in dotted lines in Figure 4, from the solid line elevated position thereof shown, so as to strike and depress the pump piston 40, against the resistance of its spring 42, so as to pump fluid from the container 32 to the basin 94, through the flexible tube 54 and the gooseneck 96. As the walking beam 142 is rocked in opposite directions the pump piston 40 is alternately depressed, and elevated by its spring 42 so that liquid is discharged, in spurts, into the basin 94.

For the purpose of simulating the drilling of and the bringing in of an oil well, preliminary to pumping the well, as above described, a compressible plug 178 is provided, which is initially engaged in the upper end of the well tube, and is adapted to be pushed out of the lower end of the tube by several operations of the drill bit 172, in the manner already described, so as to ready the toy for a well pumping operation.

The truck 120 is to be considered as a mobile drilling rig which is adapted to be run up to the well head, in a realistic simulated approach to the use of an actual full-sized mobile drill rig; or the truck can be considered as a stationary drill rig which can be secured to the extension 78 of the housing cover top wall 72.

While there has been shown and described herein a preferred form of the invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not necessarily confined thereto, and that any change or changes in the structure of and in the relative arrangements of components thereof are contemplated as being within the scope of the invention as defined by the claims appended hereto.

What is claimed is:

1. A toy oil well comprising a well assembly and a drill rig assembly, a first depressed support upon which said well assembly rests, a second elevated support spaced above said first support, said drill rig assembly resting upon said elevated support, said well assembly having a vertical well tube, said drill rig assembly having a pumper thereon having a cable depending in the well tube, and a simulated drill bit secured on the cable and working in the well tube, said drill rig assembly comprising a horizontal base plate, said pumper comprising a rockable walking beam with which said cable is operatively engaged, said well assembly comprising a vertically elongated housing having a lower end and an upper end, said well tube being disposed within the housing, said well tube having an upper end above the upper end of the housing and a lower end spaced above the lower end of the housing, a liquid container in the lower end of the housing, a pump in communication with the container and having a vertical piston beneath and vertically aligned with the lower end of the well tube, said piston being upwardly spring-pressed and being arranged to be engaged and depressed by said drill bit on a downstroke of the drill bit in the well tube.

2. A toy oil well comprising a well assembly and a drill rig assembly, a first depressed support upon which said well assembly rests, a second elevated support spaced above said first support, said drill rig assembly resting upon said elevated support, said well assembly having a vertical well tube, said drill rig assembly having a pumper thereon having a cable depending in the well tube, and a simulated drill bit secured on the cable and working in the well tube, said drill rig assembly comprising a horizontal base plate, said pumper comprising a rockable walking beam with which said cable is operatively engaged, said well assembly comprising a vertically elongated housing having a lower end and an upper end, said well tube being disposed within the housing, said well tube having an upper end above the upper end of the housing and a lower end spaced above the lower end of the housing, a liquid container in the lower end of the housing, a pump in communication with the container and having a vertical piston beneath and vertically aligned with the lower end of the well tube, said piston being upwardly spring-pressed and being arranged to be engaged and depressed by said drill bit on a downstroke of the drill bit in the well tube, said housing having a basin on its upper end, a liquid return tube connected into and depending from the basin within the housing and leading into said container, a flexible tube leading upwardly from said pump into said basin.

3. A toy oil well comprising a well assembly and a drill rig assembly, a first depressed support upon which said well assembly rests, a second elevated support spaced above said first support, said drill rig assembly resting upon said elevated support, said well assembly having a vertical well tube, said drill rig assembly having a pumper thereon having a cable depending in the well tube, and a simulated drill bit secured on the cable and working in the well tube, said drill rig assembly comprising a horizontal base plate, said pumper comprising a rockable walking beam with which said cable is operatively engaged, said well assembly comprising a vertically elongated housing having a lower end and an upper end, said well tube being disposed within the housing, said well tube having an upper end above the upper end of the housing and a lower end spaced above the lower end of the housing, a liquid container in the lower end of the housing, a pump in communication with the container and having a vertical piston beneath and vertically aligned with the lower end of the well tube, said piston being upwardly spring-pressed and being arranged to be engaged and depressed by said drill bit on a downstroke of the drill bit in the well tube, said housing having a basin on its upper end, a liquid return tube connected into and depending from the basin within the housing and leading into said container, a flexible tube leading upwardly from said pump into said basin, and a cover on the upper end of the housing upon which said basin is mounted.

4. A toy oil Well comprising a well assembly and a drill rig assembly, a first depressed support upon which said well assembly rests, a second elevated support space-:1 above said first support, said drill rig assembly resting upon said elevated support, said well assembly having a vertical well tube, said drill rig assembly having a pumper thereon having a cable depending in the well tube, and a simulated drill bit secured on the cable and working in the well tube, said drill rig assembly comprising a horizontal base plate, said pumper comprising a rockable walking beam with which said cable is operatively engaged, said well assembly comprising a vertically elongated housing having a lower end and an upper end, said well tube being disposed within the housing, said well tube having an upper end above the upper end of the housing and a lower end spaced above the lower end of the housing, a liquid container in the lower end of the housing, a pump in communication with the container and having a vertical piston beneath and vertically aligned with the lower end of the well tube, said piston being upwardly spring-pressed and being arranged to be engaged and depressed by said drill bit on a downstroke of the drill bit in the well tube, said housing having a basin on its upper end, a liquid return tube connected into and depending from the basin within the housing and leading into said container, a flexible tube leading upwardly from said pump into said basin, and a cover on the upper end of the housing upon which said basin is mounted, said cover having a top wall having a lateral extension resting upon said elevated support, and means acting between the cover and the housing for vertically adjusting the cover relative to the housing to position said extension to rest upon elevated supports of different heights above the depressed support.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 510,366 Raky Dec. 5, 1893 1,608,783 Eichelberger Nov. 30, 1926 1,719,142 Snowalter July 2, 1929 2,382,782 Eichelberger Aug. 14, 1945 2,722,773 Bonanno Nov. 8, 1955 

